


The Children of Chaos

by Tenryu_no_Hoko



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-23
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2020-09-24 09:36:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20356312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tenryu_no_Hoko/pseuds/Tenryu_no_Hoko
Summary: 400 years ago, a dark mage and celestial wizard teamed up, and devised a plan that would bring an end to the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse. With their combined power, they sent five dragon slayers into the future to stop him. But, what they didn't know, was that Acnologia was waiting for them...(Stronger!Darker!Dragon Slayers)





	1. Prologue

**400+ Years Ago**

The two hooded figures stood in front of a massive doorway-looking structure. At first glance, you wouldn't believe it went anywhere. It wasn't attached to anything. If you saw it today, you'd probably just think it was a piece of modern art or something with its elaborate design; the bottom half being dark blue and the top being green and split into twelve segments, a circle in each one, and in the center was a sun with a moon just below it. There were two pillars on each side, with a leg shaped support on each. They were connected by an arch, and, at the very top of the arch was an emblem of the sun being covered by the moon.

An eclipse.

Yes, to any non-mage, you'd think this massive doorway was just another waste of the king's money.

But these two knew better.

This was no ordinary gate. Any mage worth his salt could feel the immense magic power this thing was emitting. And after many cruel years of war and being hunted by the kingdom, they'd finally gathered enough.

They were finally going to do it.

"Zeref," asked one figure. From the voice alone you could tell it was a female, if the blonde locks spilling out from her hood didn't already give it away. "Are you sure this will work?"

"I am, Anna," responded the other. His voice was cool, yet filled with a deep sadness. One that could also be seen in his piercing red eyes. "If I didn't, then I wouldn't be sending my own brother."

Anna looked down to the ground. Her eyes were distant, and threatening to spill tears.

"Anna, I know what you had in the past, but that's over. There's no saving him, and it's my fault. This is our only hope now. We can't defeat him in this age, there's not enough ethernano left. We barely even have enough to do this."

The celestial mage tightened her fists, steeling her resolve. "I know. This has to be done. I just wish there was another way."

"There isn't," the dark mage said solemnly, then looked to the sky.

"The dragons should be here soon. We'll say our goodbyes, then send them off. To an age when the world's magic supply has been restored."

* * *

One by one, the dragons came. The first to arrive was a pure white one with a mane around its head and enormous, almost angelic, wings. In its claws it carried a small blonde boy.

The next one was almost the complete opposite of the other. With pitch black scales, horns on its head, and demonic looking ruby eyes, you'd believe it was something straight out of a nightmare. Yet, despite its appearance, it was gently cradling the small black-haired boy it had in his claws.

Next came a light-blue-almost-white, feathered dragon. In her talon-like claws, she held a young blue-haired girl.

The fourth dragon that flew in wasn't quite like the other three, being the only one made of his own element. His entire body consisted of metal, and he had a cold, sharp gaze. In his claws was another ebony-haired boy, this one older than all three of the other children.

The fifth and final dragon was the one Zeref had wanted to see most. A smile almost crossed his lips as he saw the red-scaled fire dragon descend to the earth, for he could also see the pink-no, _salmon_, as he had constantly been reminded-hair of the sleeping boy in the dragon's claws.

"Natsu," Zeref whispered with a small smile.

"Zeref," the red beast growled, "This had better work."

"Yeah!" agreed the metal dragon, "My brat's barely learned anything. Though it's his own fault, not listening and shit..."

"Metalicanna!" shouted the feathered dragon, "There are children present!"

"Eh, whatever Grandine. There asleep anyways."

"Hrm," Grandine growled, "Well, at least you got to teach Gajeel some attacks. I only had enough time to teach Wendy basic healing and enchantments."

The black dragon spoke up. "Grandine, they'll be fine. You know we'll always be with them."

The sky dragon scoffed. "I know."

"Skiadrum is right," Zeref spoke now, "You all don't need to worry about a thing. Your children will be sent to a better age. One with magic. One where they can become stronger. The portal may separate them when they arrive, but I believe they _will _find each other. They won't be alone. They'll have you and they'll have each other. Together, they'll make it. They'll be the ones who can defeat the evil that I myself had a hand in creating."

The dark mage walked over to the red dragon's claw, and looked at the sleeping boy. "And one day, I know you'll defeat me."

He looked back up to the fire dragon, who was still glaring at him. "Igneel, king of the fire dragons, thank you for looking after my little brother."

"Mrmm ..."

Zeref gave one final smile to Natsu before glancing over his shoulder. "Anna, it's time," he said. The dark mage then got all the dragons and children in position, and all ten of them where enveloped in a bright, white light that carried them all to another time.

"Goodbye, my shadow."

"Goodbye, my light."

"Stay safe, my little hatchling."

"Later, brat."

"Goodbye, my son."

The light disappeared. All of the dragons and their children were now gone. The two mages that remained left. One to go into hiding for a couple hundred years, the other to pass on the location of this gate, so someday one of her descendants could open it in their time.

Yes, it had all gone exactly as they had planned.

Or so they thought.

What they hadn't known, was that the very evil they planned to vanquish with this scheme, had been watching the whole time.

* * *

**July 7th, Year x777**

A pink-haired boy stood crying alone in an open field. He tightly gripped the white, scale patterned scarf around his neck; the only keepsake he had of his father.

"Igneel!" the boy cried, "Igneel! Where are you?!"

The boy was silenced by a familiar sound of flapping wings and the familiar gusts of wind those wings created. While all the wildlife in the area scrambled to get away from their source, the boy faced it with a wide smile, "Igne-! Wait, you're not Igneel?"

The boy looked at the creature with a confused expression. It was a dragon, he knew that for sure, but it wasn't the one he was looking for. This one was mostly black, with some blue markings and a white stomach. The one he was looking for was... red? Yeah, red! Or was it orange? No... that's a vegetable. He was pretty sure the color was red. Red was the color of fire!

"**No, I'm not." **the creature responded, **"But I can take you to him."**

The pinkette grew excited at the idea of seeing his dad again.

"Really?! You can?!"

"**Yes, I can. Climb on."**

Natsu did as he was told and got onto the dragon's back. The great beast spread its wings, and took off with astounding speed.

"Where are you taking me?"

"**To a special place. It's somewhere where you can practice your dragon slayer magic."**

"Cool!" the boy grinned ear to ear, "Hey, are you a friend of Igneel?"

The black dragon shifted his head so he was looking at the boy, but also where he was flying. "**Friends? Not... exactly."**

"Oh... but did you know him?"

"**We were... acquainted." **The black dragon turned away from the boy as he said this, then turned it back. **"Tell me, boy, what's your name?"**

The boy smirked proudly and jabbed a thumb towards himself. "I'm Natsu Dragneel! Son of the great and awesome fire dragon Igneel!"

**"Natsu, eh?"**

"Yup!" Natsu continued to grin, "What's your name?"

**"I have gone by many names throughout the years," **the black dragon said,

** "But you can call me... Acnologia."**


	2. One Down

Acnologia flew high over the land of Fiore, looking over what was once his territory and reminiscing. He still couldn't believe he was doing this. Four hundred years of plotting finally coming together on this day. July 7, year x777.

The dragon of the apocalypse shifted his head a little to glance at the sleeping form of the pinkette he'd picked up just one hour ago. The boy was so excited about seeing his foster father he'd actually worn himself out. He was just one large bundle of energy and happiness. It made the dragon smile.

He was going to have fun trying to break that.

"**Natsu," **the dragon said to the boy, stirring him awake.

"Huh?," groaned the still sleepy-eyed boy, "Wha... what's up, Acno?"

The chaos dragon growled.

"You good, Acno?"

"**Rrrr... fine," **he said through enormous, gritted teeth, **"But don't call me ****_Acno. _****My name is Acno****_logia_****."**

"Whatever you say, Acno!"

"**I SAID-! You know what, never mind," **Acnologia tried to subside his rage. Better to use for training. **"We're almost there."**

The dragon and slayer were approaching a large mountain in the middle of a mountain range somewhere in the northeastern part of Fiore. There was a huge cave cut into it several hundred feet above tree level. It didn't look natural; more like someone, or, rather, some_thing, _had blasted a giant hole in the mountain.

The small boy gawked at the large cave. "Wow," he gasped, "That's bigger than Igneel's cave!"

"**Thanks, made it myself," **Acno couldn't help but brag. It wasn't often he was _praised _for his destruction.

"You did?" Natsu asked, impressed.

"**Yep. Hope you like it, you'll be staying there for a while."**

"Wai-wha?" Natsu gasped again, this time from confusion, which quickly turned to anger, "But I thought you were taking me to Igneel!?" The fire dragon exploded.

Acnologia smirked, **"You've got quite a temper. That'll be good for your training."**

"What training!? Where's Igneel?! Answer me you damn dragon!"

"**Look, calm down, and I'll answer you when we land."**

Natsu wasn't happy about it, but there wasn't much he could do when the dragon could drop him at any second."Hrmph, fine..." he grumbled.

The two landed in the cave, and once again Natsu was back to gawking. Not only was the cave big on the outside, he could tell it probably stretched out for miles on the inside, possibly even connecting an entire _system _of underground caves.

"**Close your mouth, you'll catch flies."**

Natsu hadn't even realized he had his mouth open. He quickly closed it, and turned to face the black dragon.

"**Impressive, right?"**

"Where's Igneel!?"

"**Straight to the point. Yet another good quality for one of my slayers."**

"Whaddya mean _your _slayer?! You still haven't answered any of my questions! Where's Igneel?!"

"**Uh, Igneel this, Igneel that," **the dragon mocked, **"You want to know the truth about your precious ****_Igneel?"_**

"Yes." Natsu demanded.

"**Alright, but remember, you asked for this." **He leaned in towards the angry pre-teen, with an expression of complete seriousness. **"Your precious Igneel, abandoned you."**

Natsu gaped at the dragon like a fish out of water. Eventually, he was able to cross his arms and turn away from the beast. "I don't believe you."

"**Oh, really?" **Acnologia was now starting to walk large circles around the boy, **"Then tell me, where is he? Did he ****_tell _****you where he was going? Did he even tell you he was leaving, ****_at all?_****"**

"You don't know Igneel," Natsu was still trying not to believe it, but he could feel the tears forming in his eyes.

"**Face it, kid, you were left behind. Tossed away like yesterday's newspaper."**

"What's a newspaper?"

The Ragnarok dragon stopped and stared blankly at the boy. _That _was what he got out of that?

"**It's just an expression," **the dragon sighed, **"It means-"**

"What's an eggs-press-on?"

Acnologia face palmed. Of course the first dragon slayer he grabs is an idiot.

"**Not important. What I'm saying is, Igneel left, and he's not coming back."**

"But, why?" some of Natsu's tears were starting to spill out.

"**That."**

"C-crying?"

"**Weakness," **Acnologia corrected, **"Igneel left you, because you were ****_weak." _**he hissed that last part, **"You, are _an embarrassment _to your 'Great Igneel'."**

"I AM NOT WEAK!" Natsu shouted, then leaped at the dragon with a flaming fist, "**_Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!_**"

The blow managed to land directly between Acnologia's eyes. Natsu expected the great dragon to go down, or at least flinch a little. But he didn't. He didn't even _blink._ He just gave the boy a bored expression. **"Was that an attack? Or is there a fly in here?"**

Natsu growled as he leaped up again to send a barrage of attacks to the dragon. "**_Fire Dragon's Iron Fist! Wing Slash! _****_Claw_****_!-_**"

Acnologia only yawned as all his attacks harmlessly bounced off him. **"You done yet?" **he asked once he saw the pinkette panting in front of him.

"N-no..." Natsu stuttered, "This... can't be... Igneel... did he really... leave because I was weak?"

"**Well, you're a dragon slayer, right?" **Acnologia raised one of his eyebrows, and gave the boy a smug look, **"Do I look slain?"**

The Fire Dragon Slayer stared at the giant beast before him. There wasn't a scratch on him. He'd done _nothing!_

Natsu lit his fist on fire and punched the nearest wall, cracks formed as tears welled in the fire dragon's eyes, "Dammit, Igneel! You said you'd make me strong!"

Acnologia gave a small, victorious smile. It was already working.

"**You may be weak now, but I can make you stronger. I can make you into something Igneel never could've. I could make you worthy of being called a ****_dragon_****."**

Natsu, unlike how he normally did things, thought about this. Should he do this? Can this dragon really make him stronger? He really didn't know what to think anymore. Igneel, his _father_, had left him! Because he was _weak!_

He clutched his scale-patterned scarf in his hand. There was fire in his eyes as he looked at it.

_'Well, I'll show him,' _the boy thought.

"When do I start?"

Acnologia gave a small laugh at this.

** _'Only four more to go...'_ **


	3. New Faces

He was running. Running from his father who left him. Running from a best friend who betrayed him. Running from the people he saved, but refused to save him.

"You! Stop right there!"

Oh, and the Rune Knights. He was running from them too.

The raven haired boy ignored the order of the Knight and kept on his mad dash through the rainy streets of Denish. He didn't know where he was going, he had nowhere left to go. But as the tear fell from his piercing ruby eye, he just knew he had to get _away_.

He didn't even understand why they were chasing him. He was the _good guy!_ The guy who went in without a care for himself, only for his friend and the people who couldn't defend themselves.

And look where that got him.

The boy made a sharp turn down a nearby alleyway. It led him onto a new street, one that could lead him out of the city. He continued onwards, with only a few of the Rune Knights chasing him now.

If he was at full strength, he wouldn't have needed to run from this bunch. Hell, at full strength, he wouldn't have had to run _at all!_ Just one attack from him would've wiped them all out. But after the stunt he and his partner just pulled, it was going to be a while before he even had _half_ of that back.

And the running wasn't helping either.

"Hey, you! Stop!"

Once again the guy was thoroughly ignored.

A quick glance back told the boy he had three Knights on his tail, two of which were armed with some sort of magic staff. The third just looked like a kid only a little older than himself. He figured it was a trainee or something. With his advanced hearing, he could hear the Knights telling the kid to go back, and almost hear his name. Larry? Jaffar, maybe?

Eh, not like it mattered to him. He just had to outrun them.

He was quickly approaching a bridge just on the outskirts of town. The bridge ran across a canyon about a mile wide and half a mile deep. It was also in desperate need of repair, but no one in the city ever bothered. Why fix a bridge that would just lead you to a forest filled with monsters?

The boy didn't have time to test if the bridge was safe, those Knights were blasting rune traps at him left and right. He made it halfway across the bridge before he was finally hit.

Dammit! The boy internally cursed.

"Well, we finally got you," one of the Knights grinned smugly, "Feel bad for robbing the Gyuji family?"

"No," was all the boy had to say.

"Well, you should," the Knight continued, "'Cause now you're going to prison." The boy looked to see the other Knight was also grinning, and that kid finally stayed behind at the end of the bridge.

Both of the Knights waited for the boy to respond. When he didn't, they decided to taunt him a little.

"Heheh, what? Cat got your tongue?" the other Knight asked, leaning in to look at the kid they caught. "Those are some nice piercings you've got. Where'd ya get 'em?"

A grunt was the only response.

"Not much of a talker, are you?" the first Knight asked as the other one got up.

"Well, enough of this. Let's take him in."

They were about to disperse the rune cage and put the anti-magic cuffs on the boy when an ear-piercing screech rang through the canyon. All three Knights were scared as the dark figure approached, but the boy just smirked. After all, this was his ticket out.

_So, ya finally came back?_

The creature appeared to be flying lower as it came towards them. So low it got to the point where it was flying between the canyon walls.

Good. His plan wouldn't work otherwise.

Just as the beast was about to fly under the bridge, the ravenette turned to the Knights and smirked. "Gihi! Later losers!"

He stomped on the loose board beneath him, breaking it and letting himself fall onto the creature's back. It began to ascend, and the boy got a perfect view of the Knights' astonished faces.

"Ha! Just look at their faces!" the boy said as he turned around, "Looks like ya' finally came back for me ya old- wait." The boy stared at the dragon in confusion.

"You're not Metalicana."

* * *

Meanwhile, Natsu was busy practicing his _**Roar** _(above water), and waiting for Acnologia to come home. The dragon told him to keep practicing his magic until he came back with a "surprise." The boy hoped it was food.

Something he didn't have to hunt for himself for a change.

That had pretty much been his life for the past two months. Hunt or you don't eat. Get your own firewood, or you freeze. Obey, or you get punished.

The pinkette winced at the memory of Acnologia punishing him because he was slacking off. It only happened once.

It only needed to happen once.

Yes, Acnologia's training was much tougher than Igneel's. But the boy could feel it working. He felt stronger. Tougher.

Like a dragon.

If this was what Igneel had wanted him to become, then so be it. He'll keep this up. He'll go along with Acnologia's ridiculous training if it meant he would get stronger from it. He was a dragon slayer, after all. He could take it.

Natsu let out a Roar that burnt a clear pathway through the forest as far as the boy could see (which was pretty far). Before his Roars would just spread out and leave the trees in flames. Acnologia had taught him how to make them more compact and focused, thus making the flames hotter and more destructive.

He liked destruction.

The fire dragon slayer decided he'd done enough for now. He would rest until he saw the black dragon flying back, then pretend like he never stopped training. He was a genius!

Natsu decided he'd take a walk down the path he just made. Putting his hands behind his head, he walked over the charred dirt and enjoyed the scenery.

He was thirty yards in when he smelled something strange. Its smell was like his, an odd mix of person and dragon. But there was also the scent of... metal?

Natsu didn't really care what he smelled except for the human part. He'd never seen another human before! And this guy could be a dragon slayer too! Bonus!

He went off in a sprint towards the source of the scent. Luckily for him, it wasn't too far down the pathway he created. He finally found it lying behind a bush.

It was a boy, seemingly only a year older than himself. He was wearing street clothes that looked like they needed to be cleaned. His hair was black, and he had piercings on his face. Natsu couldn't see his eyes, though; they were closed.

The new boy sat up and held a hand to his forehead. "Damn dragon," he groaned, "Almost got me fried."

"Oi!" Natsu greeted, cheerful and ignoring the pierced kid's anger.

The kid in the bush snapped his head up and revealed his deep red eyes. "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Natsu!" the pinkette said while jabbing his thumb at himself, "You smell like a dragon. Are you a dragon slayer too?"

"Too?" the boy questioned.

"Yeah. I'm a Fire Dragon Slayer. I was taught by my former father Igneel."

"Former?"

"You keep asking questions. You must not be very smart."

The ravenette looked like he was about to pop a blood vessel. He launched himself up at the pink haired boy.

"I'm plenty smart! It's you that's not makin' sense!"

"What's confusing?" the pinkette questioned, "I was raised by a dragon as his son. He taught me magic. Now he left and I'm being raised by a new dragon who's an asshole. But don't tell him I said that!" He added that last thing in a panic.

"Wait, yer dragon left you too?" the boy asked.

"Yes, I just said that." Natsu didn't have the patience, to begin with. Now he could feel it reaching negative levels. "You still haven't answered any of my questions."

"Well, I'm Gajeel Redfox. Iron Dragon Slayer." the boy now known as Gajeel smirked. "And it looks like were in the same boat."

"What's a boat?"

Gajeel just stared at Natsu's genuinely confused face. He really didn't know what a boat was. Or what an idiom was.

And he called _him_ the idiot.

"Nevermind," the iron dragon brushed that off, "This new dragon. Acnologia, right?"

"You know him?" Natsu was surprised.

"More like just met. But he told me I had to walk the rest of the way to his cave. And that I could punish his other student if he was neglecting his training." He said the last part with a mischievous grin.

"I'd like to see you try," Natsu boasted. He ignited his right fist and got into a battle stance.

"Fire dragon, huh?" Gajeel asked as he got into his own battle stance. "Well, Salamander, let's see what's stronger. Your flames, or my iron!"


	4. Fire Forges Iron

"Let's go!" Natsu blasted forward with his fist blazing and suddenly closed the gap between himself and the other dragon slayer faster than he could react.

"Wha-" His eyes went wide as Natsu's **_Iron Fist _**smashed into the side of his pierced face and sent him flying backward into a nearby tree trunk with so much the force the tree fell and hit the forest floor with a solid thud.

"I'm the fire dragon slayer and I'm not going to lose to anyone." He stood tall with his fists still burning and a wide grin on his face.

"That was a cheap shot." The black haired boy jumped up to his feet with a smirk on his face before pulling his fist backward.

"**_Iron Dragon's Club!_**" A large green magic circle appeared in front of him and then he thrust his fist through it, transforming his arm into a large iron club that shot out straight towards Natsu

"_Ugh!" _The iron club slammed into his stomach and pushed him backward leaving deep trails in the dirt from the power behind it. Natsu tucked his left arm under the club while he gripped the top of the club with his right hand, holding onto it tightly.

"Now that's more like it! I'm all fired up!" The Gajeel's red eyes widened as steam rose from Natsu and the ignited hand on top of his **_Iron Dragon's Club_**. "Eat this!" Natsu roared out, lifting Gajeel off of the ground and swinging him away like a frisbee, sending him towards a large tree.

The other dragon slayer took it in stride and back flipped in the air until his feet touched the trunk where he exploded off it racing back towards Natsu with his fist pulled back ready to return the favor.

Natsu threw his left arm up and took the hit on his forearm. The black haired boy didn't expect the sudden block and was unprepared for the immediate counterpunch as Natsu leaned back and with his right hand, slammed a blazing **_Iron Fist_** haymaker into his jaw, rocketing him into the base of another tree.

The tree fell apart from the impact but Gajeel jumped right back up on his feet.

"There's a reason I go by "**_Black Steel_**" Gajeel." He mocked brushed off the dirt on his shirt. "That didn't affect me at all."

"Heh, doesn't look like that to me." Natsu taunted back.

"You sure?" Gajeel sprinted forward and quicker than Natsu thought was possible, Gajeel appeared right in front of him. While his body couldn't react fast enough, his dark green eyes narrowed to see Gajeel's leg transform into a pillar of iron and crash into his gut with enough force to get him off his feet and skid him across the forest floor several yards away.

"Come on, bring it. You're not affected either, right?" Gajeel loomed over the rubble that Natsu was underneath with glowing red eyes and an intense energy rising from him.

A blast of fire that destroyed the rubble on top of him was Natsu's immediate response.

"Hehehe. You got me pretty good there…" His words didn't match his face as he had a grin on but he was boiling on the inside, as flurries of ashes from the rubble fluttered around him. Gajeel had the same expression on his face wanting nothing more than to pound Natsu into the ground.

"You're an annoying little pyro, you know that?" A large green magic circle appeared around Gajeel's right fist as he finished his sentence.

"What was that Metal Face?!" A bright red circle appeared around Natsu's right fist as well and he copied Gajeel's fighting stance.

"I'll crush you!**_ Iron Dragon's Club!_**" Gajeel transformed his arm into a large iron club again and aimed it right at Natsu's head.

"_Grgh._" He caught the pillar with his right hand but the strength behind it pushed him back a couple of feet leaving a trail in the dirt. He shot his head up once he adjusted to it.

"Your steel beams can't even touch me! You better start stepping up your game!" The fire grew around his fist and encompassed his whole body before he began to crush the end of the pillar through sheer strength.

"Oh? Acno did say something about you being stronger than you look." The pillar quickly retracted back and transformed into his hand. "That actually burns a little." He left his hand up showing Natsu the steam rising from it after Natsu's grab.

"So? Is that all you got, Salamander?"

"Don't worry about that. This was just a greeting. You ain't seen nothing yet!"

Natsu's eyes narrowed looking for a moment to strike but Gajeel waited for him. Natsu leaped forward into the air while Gajeel did the same a moment afterward with a grin on his face.

The exchange happened in the blink of an eye as Natsu drove his left **_Iron Fist _**straight only for Gajeel to slam it down with a low block from his **_Iron Club_** and without skipping a beat Natsu sent his right **_Iron Fist_** towards Gajeel's face but by now Gajeel expected it so he blocked it with his right **_Iron Club_** and immediately kicked Natsu back down to Earthland with a thunderous left roundhouse to the stomach.

"_Heavy…"_ was all Natsu could think as landed on his feet, hunched over his stomach in pain and a clearly grimaced look on his face. He wasn't given long to get over it as Gajeel was quickly diving towards him with his foot aimed at him.

Natsu ignited his fist and grunted out as he tried to hit Gajeel before he could land. Gajeel leaned his head backward just in time for the flames to only brush his nose but he was out of position to land a counter so he used Natsu's other arm as a springboard and leaped backward towards one of the few surrounding trees.

He stuck the landing by sprouting sharp, harpoon-like blades from the sole of each of his feet, suspending him upside down one of the tree's branches. But he wasn't given a moment to breathe as Natsu was already rocketing towards him.

"**_Fire Dragon's SWORD HORN!_**" Natsu's body was entirely engulfed in flames and was flying towards Gajeel at an incredible speed with a headbutt. Gajeel could only throw up his arm to protect himself as Natsu drove his head directly into his **_Iron Club_**.

The power behind the attack sent Gajeel flying backward, breaking through tree after tree, out of control until he crashed into the ground leaving a small crater and huge dust cloud.

"Now, I'm fired up!" Natsu stood outside of the cloud and slammed his burning fists together excited to keep going.

A powerful green aura erupted from the center of the cloud and blew the dust away revealing Gajeel battered but not out yet.

"Wha-" Natsu was shocked as the energy grew into a pillar of dragon slayer magic engulfing Gajeel.

_"**Secret Dragon Slayer Art!**"_ He slammed his hands together above his head and all of the magic he was building up condensed around them. A massive pillar of something was forming above him as he roared out: "**_Karma Demon: Iron-_**"

His pierced face morphed into one of pain and suddenly the magic lost focus and his spell fell apart. Gajeel fell to his knees exhausted and breathing heavily from his attempt at such a powerful spell for his age.

"Damn it!" Gajeel weakly punched the ground beneath him in anger as he breathed heavily. "I should have mastered it by now."

"Woah! What was that?!" Natsu was grinning at him in excitement at learning a new technique since the two of them had enough. At this point, both of them knew the fight was over. Gajeel was tough, but while Natsu had the energy to spare, Gajeel wasted too much magic to keep going for much longer.

"Like I would tell you, pyro." Gajeel stood up with a pissed off look on his face as Natsu was starting to jump from one foot to the other like the bundle of energy he was. "Come on what did you say? Something secret dragon slayer fart?"

Gajeel had an angry tick mark on his face when he heard him. "You idiot! Why would I say that?!"

"That's what I'm asking!"

"You want to go again?!" The two head-butt each other as a lightning bolt flashed between them.

"Maybe I do! I'm all fired up-"

_Clap._

_Clap._

_Clap._

Both dragon slayers turned to face the source of the noise.

There was an unexpected viewer to their fight.


	5. Human Dragons

Natsu and Gajeel both turned to face the unexpected viewer to their fight.

He was a young man, looking roughly in his early twenties at most. Dark skinned, dark blue hair, and bearing some very familiar markings on his skin in light blue. He wore a high colored black cloak, also with dragon markings, sharp red claws around his neck, a sash around his waist, and long, baggy pants.

"Very good," the man said as he approached, "I expect no less from two of my slayers."

"Who the hell are you?" Gajeel asked gruffly, as both he and Natsu got ready to fight.

"Ah yes," the man nodded his head down, "I suppose you wouldn't recognize me in this form."

There was a sadistic smile on the man's face as he crossed both of his arms, then flung them apart as black scales began to cover his body.

Both dragon slayers stepped away as the man grew in size. In his new form, he let out a mighty roar.

"**Recognize me now?" **Acnologia asked with a smirk.

"How did you _do _that?!" Natsu asked excitedly. '_That was even cooler than the time Igneel-! No!' _The boy had to remind himself, Igneel was dead to him.

Gajeel wasn't as much excited. More like confused and in shock. "What the-?"

"Wait, are you a dragon?" asked the curious fire slayer, "Or human?"

"**I am a ****_dragon_****," **Acnologia hissed, **"I only used to be one of those ****_vermin_****."**

"What's wrong with humans?"

"Everything," Gajeel was the one to respond. "They lie. They cheat. They'll sell ya out the first chance they get." He then looked down and smirked, "Heh, then again, I guess my old man's not much better."

"Oh," Natsu said sadly, "I didn't know they were like that."

**"Well, they are," **Acnologia told the pinkette, **"They'll simply use you for their own selfish gain."**

"Oh..." Natsu looked down. Were humans really like this?

The pinkette looked back at the black hair, who was crossing his arms and looking like he was recalling bad memories.

"You said your father was like that. Were you... abandoned by your dragon, too?"

"Yeah, but he ain't my father. Made that clear when he up and left." Gajeel said stoically to Natsu, then looked up to the Black Dragon. "Oi! Acno! What's the big idea here? You runnin' an adoption agency for slayers with shitty dragon parents?"

"**In a manner of speaking, yes." **the dragon responded, eyes closed and with a tick mark on his head, **"And DON'T CALL ME ACNO!"**

"Whatever ya say, Acno! Gihi!"

"Dude, you are in for _hell _when training starts."

* * *

It was a little while later now. The sun was just about setting, and the two dragon slayers were sitting over the cliffside, watching it.

"Damn dragon," mumbled Gajeel, rubbing his back.

"Told you it'd be hell," Natsu smugly stated.

"You go through this every day?"

"Yup, but it's worth it!" Natsu continued to grin, "Kicked your ass, didn't I?"

"Hey! I could have won!" the iron slayer shouted, "You just got lucky's'all..." he mumbled at the end.

And Natsu was still being a cocky little shit."_Riiiiigggghhhhhttt..._"

Gajeel felt his rage boil over. He stood up and got right in the pinkette's face. "You wanna go again, Salamander?!"

"Any time, Metal Face!" Natsu replied, also standing and right in Gajeel's metal... face.

"**Silence, you two."**

They both stopped arguing and faced the source of the booming voice with panicked expressions.

Acnologia walked out of his cave in his human form, holding his fingers to the bridge of his nose. **"Honestly you two give me a headache," **he said, then whispered, **"I can't believe I still have to get the other three..."**

"There's more dragon slayers?!"

_**'Of course they heard that,' **_Acnologia thought, reprimanding himself.

"**Yes, there's more dragon slayers," **The human-dragon sighed.

"Cool!" Natsu shouted.

"Pfft. Whatever," Gajeel said in his usual Gajeel tone.

"I can't wait to fight them!"

"As if you'd win."

"I beat your ass!"

"You got lucky."

"Did not!"

"Did to."

"Did not!"

"Did to."

"Did not!"

"Did to!"

"Did not!"

"Did to!"

"**Stop it!" **Acnologia shouted, wondering of his plan was really worth _this_.

The bickering slayers stopped almost immediately and paled as they faced Acnologia. He might be in human form, but he was still every bit as terrifying as his dragon one. Maybe even more so.

"**Stop it," **the dragon man repeated, **"Look, you two don't have to like each other. But if you two want to fight, do it like ****_real dragons_****. With fists and claws, not words."[1] **Acnologia sighed, **"But do it later. You'll need your rest for tomorrow's training."**

The two young slayers groaned as they followed Acnologia back into the cave.

As they walked, Natsu remembered something that had been bothering the young fire dragon slayer since that afternoon. "Hey, Acno-" the dragon gave him a pointed glare, "_-logia,_" His glare was gone. "You said you used to be human. Is this what you looked like?"

"**Yes, it was," **Acnologia actually smiled a little as he recalled some of his human days with a certain blonde, all up until _that day_. The smile was quickly gone after that.

"How did you become a dragon?" Natsu asked. Gajeel pretended like he wasn't listening as he leaned on a nearby wall.

"**Well, I used to be a dragon slayer," **The chaos dragon answered, **"When you use enough dragon slayer magic, you'll transform into a dragon."**

"What!" Natsu shouted, eyes wide. Gajeel's eye' also widened at this, but when Natsu looked at him, he just scoffed and looked away.

"Will we become dragons?!" the pinkette frantically asked.

"**I'm afraid not. It's not ****_just _****an over-use of dragon slayer magic. That's just the main part. You also need to have slain a dragon, bathe in their blood, and have a certain spell cast on you during an eclipse." **

"What spell?"

"**An ancient spell. One created by the dark mage, Zeref."**

"And that spell was cast on you?"

"**You ask a lot of questions," **the Apocalypse Dragon Slayer complained, getting annoyed that he was bringing all these memories back, **"Yes, it was. No more questions. While I'm glad I'm no longer bound to this weak form, that day isn't one I look too fondly upon. Good night."**

And with that, Acnologia left the two younger slayers and transformed back into his dragon form, before curling up in the middle of the cave.


	6. A Breath of Fresh Air

Its been about two weeks since Metal Face, as Natsu liked to call the iron dragon, joined the Black Dragon's not-so-loving family. And all Natsu could say was, his new roommate was a jerk.

They barely spoke at all, besides arguments. Natsu tried to dig a little into Gajeel's past with his dragon and _especially_ his past with humans. But whenever he brought either thing up, the pierced slayer would just huff and walk away, mumbling something about a "shit father" or "that traitor Mash."

The fire slayer might not have made a friend or have learned anything about what people were like, but, at least with a new slayer, maybe some of Acnologia's focus can go to him! And that'll mean easier training for him, right?

Wrong.

While Acnologia admitted to being impressed with how far the fire slayer had come since they met, he wasn't too pleased with the fact that Gajeel would've taken him out if he managed to pull of his secret Fa_-art_. The dragon realized the boy wasn't great with taking physical hits.

So now he needs to improve his defensive capabilities.

And what did Acnologia decide the best way to do that was?

By throwing rocks at the poor boy and seeing if he could activate something similar to Gajeel's _**Iron Dragon's Scales**_.

So far, he can't.

Well, at least the new guy isn't getting off any easier. Along with doing all the stuff Natsu's already been doing, Gajeel had to do several hours of meditation under a waterfall to practice absorbing something called "ethernano" and expand his "magic container" (Natsu didn't really get it, but apparently Gajeel's was small and that's why his move failed. Natsu just laughed because that meant Natsu's was bigger than his).

At least the two of them had the day off today. They were surprised when Acnologia had said it, but it turned out it was because he was going to get another slayer. You can probably guess how the two already present ones reacted;

"I'm gonna fight him!"

"Eh."

So now the two of them were waiting for the dragon to come back with the new slayer. For once resting instead of training or fighting.

"Whattya think he'll be like?" Natsu mused, laying down and looking to the sky.

"Dunno, he'll probably be tough though," Gajeel shrugged, "I'm honestly more interested in what element he uses."

"Well, whatever he's like, I'm gonna fight him!" Natsu sat up and slammed a flaming fist into his opposite hand.

"Yeah, I got that," Gajeel said with an annoyed tone, rolling his eyes, "Like you'll even be able to beat him."

"I beat you!"

"You got lucky."

"Right, lucky I found such a weak opponent!"

A small tic-mark formed on Gajeel's face. "What was that, Salamander?!"

"You heard me." Natsu smugly grinned.

The iron slayer got up and ran right over to where the boy was resting. "You wanna go?!"

"Let's," Natsu said as he got up, once again reigniting his fist. "I'm all fired-"

"_**Shreeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiikkkkk!**_**"**

The ear-piercing shriek rang throughout the forest, scaring of any animals both near and far from the source. The only two that stayed where they were the two dragon slayers. And that was only because they fell to the ground, their hands trying desperately to cover their highly sensitive ears.

"Damn dragon," Gajeel muttered when the noise stopped.

"WHAT?" Natsu shouted.

As this was going on, the black winged source of their pain descended from the sky and into the nearest clearing. The two slayers quickly rushed over, eager to see who the new slayer is.

"DID YOU BRING THE NEW GUY?!" Natsu shouted to Acnologia.

"**Yes, I-"**

"COME OUT AND FIGHT ME!"

"**Ugh," **the dragon sighed, shaking his head, **"You don't change, do you?"**

"You can't just immediately challenge someone who just got here," Gajeel deadpanned, "Ever heard of first impressions?"

"WHAT?"

"You're still deaf, aren't you?"

"I DON'T HAVE BAD BREATHE!"

"Ugh," Gajeel facepalmed, then looked up to the dragon's back and shouted, "Oi! Get down here already! I'm tired'a waitin'!"

**"So much for 'first impressions',"**Acnologia said to himself, then shifted his head to look at his passenger. **"Well, come on now."**

Slowly, both slayers could see a little blue figure descend from the dragon's back. Natsu didn't even wait. As soon as its feet touched the ground, he charged right at it, about to hit it with a _**Fire Dragon's Fist**_-

-and immediately came to a halt once he saw it was a crying girl cowering in front of him.

"Eeep!" the girl shrieked. Natsu tried to apologize, but since he was still deaf and shouting, he just ended up scaring the girl more and making her hide behind one of Acno's claws.

"Goddammit Salamander."

Gajeel walked over to the claw the girl was hiding behind and tried to speak as calmly as possible.

"Sorry for... him. He's an idiot. And I think Acnologia here busted his eardrums."

**"Hey, I was telling you I was coming back."**

"We would've saw you, ya' damn dragon." Gajeel yelled at him, earning a glare from the dragon. He knew that'd mean more hellish training later.

Gajeel saw that she was sticking her head out now, and got a little bit closer. "My name's Gajeel Redfox,what's your's?"

"W-Wendy," the girl stuttered.

"Well, Wendy, why don't you come out from there while I beat some sense into Salamander."

"O-okay."

The girl stepped out from behind the dragon, and now Gajeel could clearly see her. She looked like she was only six or seven years old. She had short, blue hair, brown eyes, and wore a small, yellow dress.

"You said his eardrums burst?" Wendy asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

The bluenette didn't respond as she walked over to the deaf dragon slayer. She gestured for him to lower his head, and when he did she put both hands over his ears.

Gajeel raised an eyebrow to this. "What are you-"

He cut himself off when he saw her hands starting to glow. After a minute, the glowing stopped and she let go of Natsu's head. "There you go."

"WHAT DID YOU-" Natsu stopped and blinked a couple of times. "HEY I CAN HEAR!"

"That's great," Gajeel said, "NOW STOP SHOUTING!"

But Natsu ignored him, while Wendy flinched from all of the yelling.

"Did you do this?" asked the curious pinkette, pointing to his ear.

"Y-yes," Wendy shyly answered.

"Cool!" the fire slayer shouted, "How?"

"I-I'm the sky dragon slayer, I have healing powers."

"Really?" Wendy nodded. "That's AWESOME! What else can you do?! Do you control the sky?! Can you summon storms?! Do you know a secret fart?! What do you eat?! Is it clouds?! What do they taste like?!"

Wendy backed away nervously from the Salamander's onslaught of questions.

"Can't you see you're scarin' the poor kid," Gajeel reprimanded.

"Oh," Natsu sheepishly said, "Sorry, didn't mean to. I'm Natsu." He held out his hand.

The Sky Slayer smiled a little and took his hand. "Wendy. Wendy Marvel."


End file.
